Month: March 2020

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Firearms Industry – Closures and Acquisitions

March 24, 2020 by 1 Comment

Just like the rest of American industry, there are changes going on in the firearms industry.

It was announced late last week that the Montana Rifle Company would be closing its doors immediately. They made some very nice higher end bolt action hunting rifles. They had been bought in early 2019 by the Montana Outdoor Group.

From their release on the closure:

“While sales of our popular calibers have been outstanding, production levels have not risen to a profitable level to continue, without additional investments,” CEO Calvin Bontrager explained. “New equipment would be required to reach a service level demanded by our dealers and conservation groups.”


Montana Rifle has been producing custom-grade rifles for nearly 25-years and has been awarded “NRA’s Gun of the Year” in 2016 and “NRA’s Gun of the Year” in 2018. Montana Rifle has also produced limited editions for California Waterfowl, SCI, RMEF, and many other conservation organizations.


“With sales of the popular M1999 control feed actions nearly doubling in 2019, Montana Outdoor Group, is actively searching for restructuring opportunities,” Bontrager continued.

The temporary closures related to COVID-19 are also impacting manufacturing side of the firearms industry.

CZ-USA sent out a message today that production and shipment delays would be the rule for the next 30 days at least. This is due to local and state orders limiting activities which has caused them to close.

CZ-USA operations are subject to an Emergency Order from our local government which forces us to close our facilities in Kansas City, Kansas until at least April 23rd. Likewise, our Dan Wesson Firearms facility in Norwich, NY was closed under similar circumstances late last week due to an order from the state of New York.  


For the next 30 days, production and shipment delays are inevitable. We apologize for the inconvenience we know this will cause — we hold our nation’s Second Amendment rights to be sacred and are very concerned about the impact that emergency orders will have on our customers. We will work diligently to deliver products as soon as legally possible, while maintaining social responsibility and compliance with government orders.

Finally, EOTech has been purchased from L3Harris by American Holoptics LLC.

American Holoptics LLC™, a privately-held U.S. company, has signed a definitive agreement with L3Harris™ to acquire EOTech®.The transaction is expected to close mid-2020 and is conditioned on customary closing conditions. American Holoptics is a subsidiary of Koucar Management, whose strategic acquisitions of Elite Defense® and HEL Technologies™ represent a solid foundation of cutting-edge optical science and weapons systems distribution. The American Holoptics leadership team has an exceptionally broad and deep experience providing high-quality products to the global weapons accessory market. In addition, this team has a proven track record of building customer-first and technology-focused organizations. “We’re proud to sign this agreement to join our team and technology with the EOTech brand,” says Matt Van Haaren, CEO of American Holoptics. “EOTech brings together technologically advanced product lines and production capabilities that will integrate well with our existing business and strategically expand our product portfolio. Together we will deliver an all-new level of service, innovation, and integrity to military, law enforcement and civilian users around the world.” 

Koucar Management is a privately held Michigan-based company that owns companies in a variety of industries including construction, property management, hotels, software, and technology. In the firearms and defense industry realm, they own Elite Defense, American Holoptics, and HEL Technologies. They also own companies like Detroit Taco Company and Cambria Hotels.

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The Caning Of Charles Sumner

March 23, 2020 by 1 Comment

Sen. Charles Sumner of Massachusetts was an ardent abolitionist. On the floor of the Senate in 1856, he made a speech in which he castigated Sen. Andrew Butler of South Carolina over his support for slavery.

Butler was not present when Sumner made his speech but his cousin, Rep. Preston Brooks of South Carolina, got wind of it. As the Senate’s historian puts it:

Representative Preston Brooks was Butler’s South Carolina kinsman. If he had believed Sumner to be a gentleman, he might have challenged him to a duel. Instead, he chose a light cane of the type used to discipline unruly dogs. Shortly after the Senate had adjourned for the day, Brooks entered the old chamber, where he found Sumner busily attaching his postal frank to copies of his “Crime Against Kansas” speech.

Moving quickly, Brooks slammed his metal-topped cane onto the unsuspecting Sumner’s head. As Brooks struck again and again, Sumner rose and lurched blindly about the chamber, futilely attempting to protect himself. After a very long minute, it ended.

You can see a reenactment of this in the Drunk History video below.

It amused me that the odious Patton Oswalt aka Constable Bob in Justified played Sen. Sumner.

What got me to thinking about the caning of Sen. Sumner was the behavior of the Democrats in the Senate and Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Twice now the Senate Democrats have stopped passage of a coronavirus stimulus package. This came after they had worked out the details over the past week with the Republican majority.

Pelosi has larded up her so-called package with more agenda items and less stimulus items that will get people back to work and on their feet. As Majority Whip James Clyburn (D-SC) told House Democrats, “This is a tremendous opportunity to restructure things to fit our vision.”

Forgive me for thinking that we need to take a gutta-percha brass-headed cane a’la Preston Brooks to the heads of certain Democrat obstructionists. Of course, I mean this figuratively as voters and not literally. Losing power and the attendant perks would be the worst punishment for most of them.

The actual cane is now on display at the Old State House Museum in Boston.

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Fellow Travelers, Useful Idiots, or Both?

March 22, 2020 by 1 Comment

Merriam-Webster definition of a fellow traveler:

: a person who sympathizes with and often furthers the ideals and program of an organized group (such as the Communist party) without membership in the group or regular participation in its activities

broadly: a sympathetic supporter of another’s cause

Useful idiot:

In political jargon, a useful idiot is a derogatory term for a person perceived as propagandizing for a cause without fully comprehending the cause’s goals, and who is cynically used by the cause’s leaders

The Soviet Union made great use of both fellow travelers and useful idiots. This article by John Gray in the British publication New Statesman goes into great detail about them. Fellow travelers willfully ignore the misdeeds of these authoritarian states while praising their successes.

Just like the former Soviet Union, China goes to great lengths to make use of fellow travelers and apologists. They also use their growing economic clout to discourage criticism of their regime, its policies, and its practices. One merely needs to look at how they forced the NBA to kow-tow to them over criticism of their actions in Hong Kong.

It appears now that they are using Democrat politicians like Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) and former Obama advisor Ben Rhodes to stifle criticism of their response to COVID-19 as the following tweets make clear.

Given the overwhelming evidence that the Chinese Community Party and President Xi Jinping have done everything in their power to cover up their own complicity in the spread of COVID-19, the question remains whether Schiff and Rhodes are fellow travelers, useful idiots, or both.

UPDATE: The New York Times has an excellent interactive graphic showing the spread of COVID-19. It is entitled How the Virus Got Out and is worth watching.

Before the Chinese government imposed travel restrictions, it is estimated that 7 million people can and went from Wuhan which was the epicenter. Let me repeat – 7 million people left Wuhan after the first cases were discovered and thousands upon thousands were already infected.

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I Don’t Think That Headline Means What You Think It Means

March 21, 2020 by 2 Comments

The online version of Newsweek magazine had the most misleading headline ever related to the recent panic buying of firearms. Since I don’t think merely quoting it does it justice, here is a screen shot of it.

Do they mean gun rights advocacy groups like the National Rifle Association, the Second Amendment Foundation, Gun Owners of America, the Firearms Policy Coaliton, or one of the many state-level groups?

Umm. No.

Once you start reading the article you come across comments from these “gun advocacy” luminaries.

“Fear has been the motivation for much of the increases in firearms purchases,” David Chipman, Senior Policy Advisor for gun control advocate group Giffords, told Newsweek.

“A small percentage of the marketing to gun owners has been to encourage preparation for end times scenarios and zombie apocalypses.”

Chipman said the country’s current gun laws allow people to hoard weapons in the same way they are able to mass buy toilet paper.

Chipman, of the Cult of Personality Known As Giffords, goes on to say he is a gun owner himself. Of course he is.

Not to be out done is this advocate is the co-president of Brady United.

Kris Brown, President of the Brady gun control campaign group, also said she is “very fearful” that the number of friendly fire incidents involving children could also dramatically increase as millions of children who are not currently at school will be present in their homes with these new weapons.

Brown said the feeling of short term security and safety that is provided by purchasing a weapon is masking the actual risk that will be dramatically increased.

“I understand in any time of crisis there is fear, the desire to do something to try and create a sense of security, and safety is paramount. The same instinct as fight or flight is what’s kicking in here,” she told Newsweek.

“The reality is the purchase of a gun is actually going right into harm’s way.”

It’s always “for the children” with them.

Last but not least is that “stay at home mom of five” and former corporate PR flack Shannon Watts herself.

“Right now, there’s no question that everyone is worried about their family’s safety. We know there are risks associated with having a gun in the home, especially when kids are involved, which is why responsible gun owners store their guns locked, unloaded and separate from ammunition.”

Watts added the presence of guns in a house also increases the risks of suicide and domestic violence.

“The NRA has spent decades selling a myth that more guns make us safer, but if that were true, the U.S. would be the safest nation on earth,” she said. “Instead, we have a gun homicide rate that’s 25 times higher than the average of other developed nations.”

Watts suggested if people truly want to protect their families during these unsettled times, they should “wash their hands and lock up their guns.”

While I can’t disagree with Mrs. Watts on the importance of hand washing, the rest of her statement is all too typical of her.

The best thing I can say about that headline is that they didn’t characterize these gun prohibitionists as “gun safety groups”. Indeed, the author of this article specifically refers to both Giffords and Brady as “gun control advocate” or “gun control campaign” groups.

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Kind Of Shocking That They Sought An Indictment

March 21, 2020 by 2 Comments

I subscribe to press releases from various BATFE Field Divisions. I got one from the Chicago Field Division yesterday that kind of shocked me.

They actually sought an indictment against someone for lying on the Form 4473 and facilitating a straw purchase.

Matthew D. Krueger, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, announced, a federal grand jury returned an indictment against Hanna N. DeCicco (age 22) of Milwaukee with Making a False Statement to a Federal Firearms Dealer, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 922(a)(6) and 924(a)(2) on July 10, 2019.

DeCicco is charged with one count of being a straw purchaser of firearm. She knowningly made a false and fictitious that she was the actual buyer of the firearm, when in fact, she was acquiring the firearm for someone else. DeCicco faces a maximum of ten years of imprisonment, three years of supervised released, and a $250,000 fine. 

This case is being prosecuted as part of the Project Safe Neighborhoods initiative. Project Safe Neighborhoods is a federal, state, and local law enforcement collaboration to identify, investigate, and prosecute individuals responsible for violent crimes in our neighborhoods. Project Safe Neighborhoods’ strategy brings together all levels of law enforcement and community resources to reduce violent crime and improve the quality of life in all our neighborhoods.

Do you know how rare something like that actually is? It is usually near the bottom of a Federal prosecutor’s agenda. At least it was during the Obama years.

This NPR report from 2015 noted that straw buyers were rarely prosecuted.

Many licensed gun dealers are concerned that straw purchasers are rarely prosecuted, says Lawrence Keane of the National Shooting Sports Foundation.

“The law says that somebody could go to jail for up to 10 years and face a fine of up to $250,000. Why that doesn’t happen more often is a question for, you know, the federal judiciary and the Department of Justice,” Keane says.

Bouchard, who retired from the ATF in 2007, admits charging straw buyers falls towards the bottom of federal prosecutors’ priority lists. He says the cases are difficult to win and resources are limited.

However, that has started to change as the Trump Administration has decided not to ignore those crimes. In the last year of the Obama Administration, only 111 people were charged with false statements on the Form 4473. By contrast, in the first seven months of FY 2019, the Department of Justice had already charge 167 people with making false statements.

The number is still low in comparison to the other Federal prosecutions involving weapons but it is on the rise. Frankly, I don’t have a problem with going after straw purchasers.

As an aside, Ms. DeCicco needs to clean her Facebook page up. An Assistant US Attorney is going to love this comment from December.

Somebody’s gonna take these games to far & end up gettin popped.

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Long Island Residents Taking Responsibility For Their Own Safety

March 20, 2020 by 2 Comments

Politicians in states like New York and California among a few others have rarely found an impediment to armed self-protection that didn’t get their approval. Nonetheless, many citizens in those states are saying that government cannot protect their families during the COVID-19 (or CCP coronavirus) pandemic.

As a result, they are taking responsibility for protecting themselves and their families in spite of the impediments thrown up by government.

Here is an example from Nassau County, Long Island.

The lines are long for groceries and also for guns as dozens of people waited to get inside Coliseum Gun Traders in Nassau County on Tuesday morning.

“I woke up and said I want to be protected tomorrow,” Jonathan Sulay said. “Who knows what will happen.”

Shop owner Andrew Chernoff said sales are soaring as the fears of the coronavirus crisis continue to climb.

“We get inventory in every day, we received this morning already,” he said. “I’m sure by the end of the day, we’ll be out again.”

Some of the customers, who wore face masks and gloves, said they fear COVID-19 could lead to a breakdown of public order with looting and robberies.

Chernoff said he is mostly selling shotguns, which start around $300.

As to why Chernoff is selling mostly shotguns, I’m sure a lot of that has to do with the impediments placed in the way of handgun ownership by New York State and Nassau County.

To be able to merely possess a handgun for target shooting or hunting you need a Pistol License. That will cost you a non-refundable $200 to apply plus another $88.25 for the fingerprints. You need to provide a passport photo, character references, and a certified copy of your driving record. This is not a license to carry which requires you prove “proper cause.”

If you actually want to purchase a handgun, you will need a “Purchase Document” which will cost you another $10 per pistol. You get this after you have paid the FFL in full for your new pistol and have reported back to the Nassau County Police the details of your purchase. By the way, you haven’t actually taken possession of your fully paid-for pistol yet. You have 10 days to go back to the dealer with the Purchase Document to pick up your new pistol or it becomes void.

Of course, as you might expect from public officials in Nassau County, they are dismissing the fact that people are taking responsibility for their own well-being.

County Executive Laura Curran whose background is as a reporter had this to say:

“Guns aren’t going to fight the virus,” Curran said at a press conference. “What will fight the virus is people staying home and isolating themselves and not having birthday parties and weddings and clustering together in big groups.”

Nassau County Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder doesn’t want people to worry.

“We got you; that’s our job,” said Nassau County Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder. “Let the professionals do what we do. The right to purchase a firearm is your Second Amendment right, but to purchase a gun because you’re afraid of lawlessness or looting … our cops have you covered.”

That is all well and good but the cops can’t be everywhere. Even with the best response times, it is usually too late by the time police arrive.

County residents like Danny Coronado, a loan officer from Rockville Centre, understand this.

Coronado, who had already waited about 45 minutes (to buy ammo) and was still not close to getting inside the store, said many other patrons are still concerned. 

“I think everyone just feels the same thing I feel, you know, worried,” Coronado said. “Hopefully it’s just unnecessary worry, like with toilet paper.”

Better to be prepared and not have to use it than being unprepared and not have it is a good way to go.

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Doing Bars And Bartenders Right In Texas

March 19, 2020 by 2 Comments

When the governor of North Carolina ordered the closing of all restaurants and bars to in-service patrons on St. Patrick’s Day, my thoughts went to the servers and the bartenders. This is not because I’m a regular patron. Rather it is because the Complementary Spouse’s first cousin just started a new job as a bartender.

Toby is very good at what he does and is very service oriented. As a result, he makes good tips whether as a server or a bartender. Immediately becoming eligible for unemployment will only replace a fraction of his income.

The NC Executive Order only tells the Alcoholic Beverage Commission to study the situation and get back to the governor in writing on regulations that they might be able to waive or show some flexibility.

Gov. Greg Abbott (R-TX) goes further than Gov. Roy Cooper (D-NC) and actually orders some things that will help bars and bartenders.

From Gov. Abbott’s press release:

Governor Greg Abbott today issued a waiver that will allow restaurants to deliver alcoholic beverages with food purchases to patrons, including beer, wine, and mixed drinks. The Governor also directed the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission (TABC) to waive certain provisions to allow manufacturers, wholesalers, and retailers of alcoholic beverages to repurchase or sell back unopened product. 

These waivers are in response to the financial hardship caused by COVID-19 that has disproportionately affected the hospitality industry. 

“The State of Texas is committed to supporting retailers, restaurants, and their employees,” said Governor Abbott. “These waivers will allow restaurants to provide enhanced delivery options to consumers during this temporary period of social distancing.”

Under this waiver, effective immediately, restaurants with a mixed beverage permit may sell beer, wine, or mixed drinks for delivery as long as they are accompanied by food purchased from the restaurant. 

The buy-back waiver allows alcohol distributors and manufacturers to repurchase excess inventory from restaurants, bars, and clubs affected by event cancellations due to COVID-19.

So bartenders can still make drinks for delivery and establishments can sell back their excess inventory. This keeps more people employed and allows the reallocation of inventory. I like it.

North Carolina should follow the example of Texas. However, given my home state’s antediluvian approach to anything dealing with alcoholic beverages, I’m not holding my breath.

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Enforced Social Distancing

March 18, 2020 by 8 Comments

Government is laying down the heavy hand when it comes to enforced social distancing. The effort is to flatten the curve when it comes to new cases of coronavirus or COVID-19.

Schools are closed in at least 70% of the school districts across the country. Efforts will be made to go to online learning or to deliver packets of materials to those without computers. I know my younger daughter’s district is doing just that. She and her fellow teachers will be going out on school buses to deliver materials today.

In many states you can’t eat in a restaurant or drink in a bar. Gov. Roy Cooper (D-NC) ordered all North Carolina restaurants and bars closed under the state of emergency as of 5pm yesterday. If a restaurant decides to remain open, it will be for take out only. Unless you live in a place like Louisiana, cocktails to go are not a thing.

Most, if not all, movie theaters are closed.

In NYC, gyms are closed unless your last name is De Blasio.

Getting together with friends for a cookout? Not in Stokes County, NC if it involves more than 10 people.

In Pennsylvania you can’t even go to the liquor store and buy booze to drown your sorrows thanks to Gov. Tom Wolf (D-PA). How in the hell can you even make a Quarantini unless you had stocked up earlier?

So what can you do?

One suggestion if you don’t already subscribe is Amazon Prime. There are a number of movies available for both adults and children that you can view on your computer, iPad, other mobile device, or on a Smart TV. While not everything is included, the Amazon Originals are included along with a number of other movies, cartoons, etc.

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Amazon allows you to try out Prime for free for 30 days. That should give you the chance to watch as much stuff as you want for the next 30 days. With some bit of luck, much of the enforced social distancing will relaxed by then. In full disclosure, Amazon pays me a “bounty” if you subscribe for the free trial.

One Amazon Original that I can highly recommend is Zero Zero Zero. It follows a shipment of cocaine from the time the Mafia in Italy decides to buy it through its shipment from Mexico to Italy. You have an intra-family drama in Italy between the old Don Minu and his grandson Stefano who wants to seize power and enact vengeance on the grandfather. You have a corrupt team of Mexican Army special forces led by a evangelical Protestant sergeant moving in on the Leyra cartel. Finally, you have an American family, the Lynwoods, acting as the intermediaries brokering the deal with their own internal drama.